Our Academy's Instructors

Mr. Kevin Raberge, Fourth-Degree Black Belt, Nationally Certified Instructor

Mr. Raberge is the chief instructor and owner of ATA Leadership Martial Arts where he is dedicated full time to the profession of teaching and practicing Songahm Taekwondo. He is a nationally-certified American Taekwondo Association (ATA) chief instructor and a fourth-degree black belt. He is recognized as a world-ranked top-ten competitor and holds numerous state championship titles. He has also been recognized by his peers in the region by his being named 2011 Regional Instructor of the Year.

As a nationally certified chief instructor through ATA, he teaches the disciplines of traditional forms, traditional weapons, self-defense, board breaking, sparring, cardio, and special needs training. However these are only physical aspects of Taekwondo. Mr. Raberge is committed to bringing out the best of each student by teaching leadership and life skills which are employed daily to achieve their personal and martial-arts goals.

"I work with families and individuals to develop goals tailored to meet the needs of the student. Successful martial-arts training results in improved performance in all aspects of life and is a very personal experience. Whether it’s improving general fitness; developing and honing life skills such as confidence, discipline and leadership; or training to compete at a high level, the ongoing success of our school is demonstrated daily in the lives of our students."

Ms. Brianna Kisch, Fourth-Degree Black Belt, Nationally Certified Instructor

Ms. Kisch is a fourth-degree black belt and nationally certified instructor. She started training with her family when the school opened in 2002. "I loved training with my family. It gave us something to do together."

Ms. Kisch has trained under chief instructor Mr. Kevin Raberge, World Demo Team coaches Mr. Gavin Espinosa and Mr. Taekwon Lee, World Demo Team Coach and XMA Founder, Mr. Mike Chat, as well as Master Janelle Gleisner. Ms. Kisch has competed in several regional, national and world tournaments and has earned consecutive Minnesota state champion titles and has placed in the world Top Ten numerous times. Along with her many accomplishments, Ms. Kisch was also a member of the World Demo Team for its final two seasons.

"Teaching is what I love to do. I love watching the transformation of changing someone life. The self-discipline, confidence, respect, and self-esteem that these kids and adults learn can set them on the right course in life. It's an amazing feeling to be a part of that."

Mrs. Lori Bovitz, Second-Degree Black Belt, Nationally Certified Instructor

Mrs. Bovitz is a nationally-certified instructor. She has been a world-ranked top-ten competitor and holds numerous state championships. She is a second-degree black belt and enjoys competing and judging at tournaments at all levels. Mrs. Bovitz received a regional achievement award in 2010 for her leadership activities.

She trains under Mr. Raberge along with her husband and two sons. She has found that when families train together, they can help each other achieve their goals. “I enjoy watching families train and grow together not only in their martial arts, but also in their life skills. Each family member brings their unique perspective on their martial-arts training, and when families combine these perspectives the entire family becomes stronger.”

Mrs. Bovitz enjoys teaching fun classes which focus on improving techniques and life skills at the same time. She strives to bring out the best from each student while having a little fun along the way. She also enjoys finding new and innovative ways to teach martial-arts techniques, so that each student can achieve their goals.

Mr. Chris Bovitz, Second-Degree Black Belt, Nationally Certified Instructor

Mr. Bovitz is a nationally-certified instructor at ATA Leadership Martial Arts. He holds consecutive state champion titles in traditional forms and sparring and is a state champion in traditional weapons. He is currently a second-degree black belt. He enjoys teaching students the way of Songahm Taekwondo at the academy, and he also enjoys judging and competing at ATA tournaments. In 2010, Mr. Bovitz received a regional achievement award for his activities.

He trains with his wife and two children under chief instructor Mr. Raberge. “I enjoy the time we spend as a family in our taekwondo classes. We have fun while learning about taekwondo. I really enjoy watching my children become more confident in not only the class but also in other parts of their lives. The change is noticeable.” He also enjoys the challenge of not only learning new skills and techniques but also keeping them sharp and teaching them to others.

Mrs. Rebecca Yu, First-Degree Black Belt, Trainee Instructor

Rebecca Yu is a first-degree black belt, an instructor trainee, and the front office person at Raberge’s ATA. She has been a student for three years but has been coming to ATA for over eight years. Becky started here as a parent of a student (her son Kevin) since he was five years old. Kevin is now a third-degree black belt, and her daughter, Erin is also a first-degree Black Belt.

"I personally saw the changes in my son when he started to learn the life skills taught at ATA. His confidence grew along with his self-control, while also building his leadership skills. I personally find that taekwondo is an activity that no matter what your skill level, what your ability, your whole family can train together and have fun together."

Miss Emily Smith, Third-Degree Black Belt, Trainee Instructor, Demo Team Leader

Emily Smith is a Demo Team leader and a trainee instructor. She is a third-degree black belt and has competed and judged in regional and national tournaments.

Emily trains under Chief Instructor Kevin Raberge and instructor Brianna Kisch. She has been a student since the age of 8. "As a junior in high school, I find that my training since an early age has given me the ability to have the confidence to protect myself, if ever the time is needed."

The life skills taught at ATA, some of which are courtesy, respect, and perseverance are skills that Emily uses in her everyday life.

Miss Cassie Dufon, Second-Degree Black Belt, Trainee Instructor, Demo Team Leader

Miss Dufon is a leader of our Demo Team and a trainee instructor. She is a second-degree black belt, sparring state champion and loves to judge and compete in tournaments all over the region. She trains under chief instructor Mr. Raberge and gets to go to class with a lot of her friends.

"It's unbelievable how many friends I've met doing taekwondo. Not only do you get to go through ranks with them but you get to encourage each other to try new and harder competitions."

She loves a challenge and is excited to start competing in XMA. She tries to always live by the principles of taekwondo such as honesty, perseverance, and confidence.

"I love teaching Demo Team because I get to be creative! It combines XMA and creative forms demonstrations with community service and team outings. I couldn't be part of a better program." She loves to see new students join the team because they become part of the team right away. "I think something special that the team has is its friendships, everyone gets along and we have a blast together!"